


A Country For Old Men

by Merkwerkee



Category: Masters of the Metaverse
Genre: s4 e19: ...Must Come Down
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-23
Updated: 2020-02-23
Packaged: 2021-02-28 03:27:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,224
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22856989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merkwerkee/pseuds/Merkwerkee
Summary: When the metapilots' bonds to their avatars are severed in the wake of processing, the avatars are left bereft and scrambling desperately for a way to find them





	A Country For Old Men

Balthazar lowered his arms and sighed. A wave of his hands had the lights coming back up and the disco ball lowering to the ground on its mooring. It had been his grandest production yet, and the backup dancers were even now shooting him sympathetic glances as they filed out.

His magic had always worked best with a large show; the larger the show, the better it worked and so when his first attempts to scry Wyatt had failed, he’d been trying increasingly elaborate rituals designed to let him see his errant friend - despite his distaste for the spectacle. This latest attempt had taken place at the largest telescope in Sentinel City, where he’d arranged to re-purpose the huge optical-grade mirrors for a few hours; he’d had backup dancers covered in the shiniest glitter he could find dancing their hearts out to a pounding dubstep bassline while the lasers he’d borrowed from a friend bounced off all and sundry to scatter on the precisely-formed disco ball he’d spent two weeks making into a perfectly-tuned magical focusing apparatus.

But it hadn’t worked. The huge mirrors had remained stubbornly blank, and he was quite frankly at his wits end. As he watched a dark figure enter through the door, he couldn’t help but reach out to the empty space in his head where - until recently - his young friend Wyatt had rested. It was a little like the first time he’d lost a tooth to a hero’s punch, his tongue constantly going to the place where the tooth used to be and feeling the raw tenderness of the newly-exposed gum. Only this time he was worried about what had happened to his missing piece.

“No joy, then?” Ezekiel said as he came to a stop just behind Balthazar’s left shoulder and the sorcerer sighed. “No joy, Zeke. Wherever they are, it’s beyond where my magic can reach.” He hung his head and Ezekiel came close enough to put a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Have you asked Hex? Or Butch? We are, the lot of us, in much the same kind of boat.”

Balthazar shook his head, still not looking at one of his most longstanding friends. “I did ask them - well, Hex came to me demanding to know what happened and both Butch and Abbi were with her, but she had no more idea than I. Wherever they are, they have passed beyond our sight.” A cloud passed over Ezekiel’s already-somber expression “Do you mean-”

“Ezekiel, I spent a great deal of my life as a necromancer. Simply because I have given up the profession doesn’t mean I don’t know where to find someone who is dead.” Balthazar said sharply - a little too sharply perhaps, because Ezekiel immediately dropped the hand that had rested on his shoulder. He missed the warmth as soon as it was gone.

“I’m sorry, old friend. This latest attempt has worn me out.” Balthazar kept his voice contrite and Ezekiel’s face eased a little, but he didn’t put his hand back. “Do you really think they’ll find what they’re looking for in space?” Ezekiel kept his voice quiet, even though they were the only ones left in the observatory, and Balthazar sighed.

“In all honesty, no. For all that there is a lot to space, I feel if it were that simple it would not be so important. Additionally,” he gestured helplessly to the room around them, lasers quiescent, disco ball still, mirrors dark, piles of glitter where the dancers had stood, “that is, just a little bit, why I decided to try it here. If what they were searching for could be reached through space, then I had rather hoped that using these space-attuned tools would let me see clearly. But I have seen nothing, Ezekiel. Nothing, just as I have seen for the last four months.”

Ezekiel came closer and put his arm around Balthazar’s shoulders. “I can’t say it’s terribly comforting prospect - you and I both know, better than most, that there are some things worse than death - but where there’s life there is hope.” Balthazar nodded mutely, and they stood in silence for several long seconds before he sighed.

“I suppose I should put this all to rights. Help me pack up? If you could get the disco ball, I’ll re-align the mirrors.” Ezekiel nodded and they set to work in a companionable silence. Balthazar magically restored the positioning systems to their original configurations and did his best to banish the glitter on the floor while Ezekiel put the disco ball carefully back in its carrying case and the lasers back into their high-tech self-propelling storage boxes. Setting the lasers to return to their owner, he picked up the carrying-case just as Balthazar gave up on trying to get rid of any more glitter (the floor still glimmered faintly, but at least now it was an even sheen) and came over to him.

Without speaking, they walked down the steps and out the doors together, keeping easy pace with each other until they got outside. Ezekiel stopped then, looking up at the moonless sky full of stars above them. Balthazar stopped too, content to wait until Ezekiel finished thinking about what he wanted to say. “Did you know Skinwalker contacted me the other day?” Balthazar blinked in surprise. Skinwalker wasn’t the most friendly of beings on a good day, but to actively reach out to Ezekiel…

“No, I hadn’t known.” He paused. “Were they also…attached?” Ezekiel nodded silently, not looking down, and Balthazar had to spend several more moments processing that. “I would hazard a guess they came to you because that is no longer the case. What did you tell them?” Ezekiel shrugged. “The same thing you told me, essentially. We don’t know why or how, but they’re gone and not likely to be coming back without some serious intervention.” Balthazar looked up at the sky as well, when his friend finished speaking and they both stood in silence.

“Wyatt was a good kid. Trying to do better anyway, and sometimes that is what counts the most.” Ezekiel didn’t seem confused by the apparent non-sequitur, but looked at him with something approaching sympathy. “Brony was too, though maybe in a different way.” They stood together in silence again, looking at the glimmering stars far above them.

“Did you want to go with them? The Bakers?” Ezekiel asked suddenly, sliding a sideways look at Balthazar, who didn’t answer for several long moments. “I was tempted; Hex asked as soon she heard what Butch was doing. But I don’t think they’ll find them out there. What they will find is a mystery, but not one I think I’ll have need of. I’m too old for that kind of nonsense.” Ezekiel snorted and Balthazar shot him a shallow grin. “Yes, yes, I know, speaking to the expert. Still, I don’t think what I need can be found out in space, though I’m sure they will take best advantage of the privacy it affords them.” 

Ezekiel snickered and nodded, matching Balthazar smirk for smirk. “And who knows, maybe the kids’ll find their way back here before the Bakers do. Wouldn’t want them to find the homestead empty.”

They didn’t speak again, but Ezekiel put his arm around Balthazar’s shoulders as they walked slowly down the path from the Observatory.


End file.
